Gerard
Cummings
Professor
Wolf
Computer
Science 312
April
10, 2004
Back Away From the Tech
Cities today have a nearby lawyer,
no longer practicing, but who now uses legal implications of software and
hardware products to provide consultation to law firms and
businesses. This is supposed to be a great advantage, since clients get
two skills at once: someone who professes to know both the law and computer
technology.
Cyberspace law is a substantive
legal field, derived from existing law, and includes the study of copyright,
trademark, First Amendment doctrine, electronic commerce, jurisdiction,
privacy, cryptography, international law, and public access to
cyberspace. Time to devote to these topics is only a preliminary concern
-- the more important matter is recognizing that these issues should be the
primary focus of a law attorney and not rely on technology so much to make a
task easier.
There is an even greater problem
with lawyers trying to use technology. The more serious problem is that the
lawyer is overstating technical problems, and scaring clients about the
technical and legal risks of software and hardware. The author explains
one scenario in which an “attorney was delighted in telling people how a
client's face would become pale whenever the lawyer described a software glitch
that might have implications for client confidentiality. The glitch he
described was so unlikely to occur that no reasonable attorney need be
especially concerned about it.” [1]
A single memorandum to the firm's staff would give all the information that
they needed to avoid the risk.
There is a simple solution to the
problem of lawyers using technology within their reach. Find a lawyer who can
explain things such as risk and liability for breach of confidentiality and not
a self-proclaimed computer wizard with a law degree.
Reference:
Technology within the Legal World: September 10, 2000 http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/04/13/ivdr_iodata/
[1] Gilbert,
Patricia